Sacrifice
by The Great NeoDragon
Summary: What will a pokemon sacrifice for the life of its trainer? There are some fates worse than death.


**Sacrifice**

It had been just a normal day, another adventure.

But within a flash, his world shrank to dust.

What would a pokemon give so his trainer could survive?

Would he give his life?

Would he give up something more important than his life?

That day, Ash Ketchum had been asked to deliver a pack filled with stones. Fire stones, water stones, sun stones, every stone he had ever seen or heard of had been in that small bag. Of course, being the good Samaritan, he agreed to the assignment with no strings attached. It had been on the way to his destination, anyway.

As always, his faithful Pikachu rode along, latched onto his companion's hat and taking advantage of the view. Brock and Misty walked alongside the young boy, as they often did.

Once the town was coming into view, the clouds began to darken and raindrops began to fall. It was a dangerous area, as their destination resided on the top of a large mountainous area. The group would have to watch their footing, a fall would be hard on their weary bodies.

Suddenly, out of apparently nowhere, a claw came from the skies and snatched Pikachu off of Ash's head.

"Prepare for trouble..."

The pokemon trainer swiftly turned to see Team Rocket, in their infamous floating balloon. Pikachu was in a small cage in James' hands. Jesse was operating the claw-like machine.

"Make it double..."

"Don't you guys ever give up?" Ash roared into the skies, ignoring the rain pouring against his face and plastering his hat to the top of his head. As he reached to his belt and circled his fingers around the poke ball, Jesse laughed.

"To protect the world from devastation!"

Brock wrinkled his nose. "I must admit they get an A for effort, but you guys really should quit by now.."

Ash threw the poke ball. "Bulbasaur, get Pikachu back!"

"To unite all peoples within our nation."

James cackled and held the cage close, determined not to let their enemies get their prized pokemon back. Not this time.

Misty stepped forward to offer help, but nearly lost footing on the slippery terrain. Her concentration was swiftly lost as she latched onto one of the large boulders. Small pebbles were kicked aside and tumbled endlessly down the craggy edges of the mountain.

"To denounce the evils of truth and love."

As Bulbasaur's vines stretched out to wrap around the cage, Jesse turned a small knob on her device and the crane literally slapped the pokemon aside. Fortunately, the small plant-like creature managed to regain its footing upon landing and avoid a nasty fall.

Pikachu cried out and turned on its electric attack. Unfortunately, the bars holding the little mouse in place were reinforced with rubber and prevented the electricity from getting through even with the rainy skies.

Ash gritted his teeth, turning his hat backwards.

"To extend our reach to the stars above!"

The young pokemon master hurled yet another poke ball into the air, calling forth Bayleef. Its large weight planted it firmly on the rocky soil. Meowth turned the heat on as high as he could in an attempts to get the balloon as far away from their opponents as possible. Just like many times before, Team Rocket could taste the sweet nectar of victory, but by now they knew, at least to some level, that if they didn't act fast than their success would be fleeting.

Brock gritted his teeth as he moved his hand towards his own poke balls...but none of his beloved companions would last long in these wet conditions.

"Jesse!"

Despite the increasing distance between them, Bayleef's long vines managed to reach and wrap itself around the edge of the balloon. The jolt caused the cage to slip from between Jame's fingers and plummet to the world below.

As Pikachu let out a mousey shriek, Ash swiftly ordered Bulbasaur into action. It sent another set of vines, which quickly wrapped around the cage and halted its descent.

James swallowed the rest of his motto, if they were going to get Pikachu back they had to do it now. Quickly wiping his drenched bangs away from his face, he looked at his partner fearfully. "Jesse! We have to do something!"

"Don't you think I know that?!" Jesse snapped as she fumbled with the controls.

Meowth growled from his place on the 'floor' of the basket they were carried in, having been knocked down by the abrupt jolt when Bayleef caught them.

Although Bulbasaur was more than strong enough to lift the cage and Pikachu, it was beginning to lose its footing as the rocks became increasingly slippery. As it began to slide, Ash got down on his stomach near the edge of the crevice. Wrapping one arm around the trunk of a small tree, he reached down and gripped the top of Pikachu's cage. "Don't worry, buddy, I got you!"

Jesse punched a few buttons into the remote, and as the claw began to reach down again, Meowth leapt onto the edge of the basket and raked a claw across Bayleef's vines. Letting out a whine, the large plant pokemon released its hold abruptly. Once again, the basket was jolted from the sudden movement. James slipped and collided into the small machine that held the crane latched onto their basket.

The impact jarred the device, and the arm and claw part of the crane detached and began to plummet. Jesse dropped the remote and dove to grab it, but she skidded to a stop and held on to the edge of the basket lest she fall with it. Meowth had fallen back onto his posterior at the bottom of the basket. James had been too disorientated to catch it, and could only watch as the object of their most recent paychecks plunged.

It took a moment for either of them to realize that it was falling right towards Ash.

Misty had realized it quickly...but she was shocked to paralysis. She couldn't even cry out for him to look, everything seemed like it was going in slow motion...yet too fast for her to react.

"Ash!" Brock's yell broke the silence. "Look out!"

The young pokemon master had been in the process of pulling Pikachu up along with Bulbasaur, slowly but careful so that neither of them would slide off of the cliff. Hearing the anguished cry of his friend, Ash looked up to see the large chunk of machinery plunging towards him. Without a second thought, he gritted his teeth and used all of his strength to hurl Pikachu up and throw him behind. The cage skidded across the wet terrain and out of harms way. The momentum and sheer force of the throw caused Ash to slide so that part of his body was hanging off the edge of the cliff. With every ounce of strength, he shoved Bulbasaur to safety.

With a loud thud and clank, the large chunk of machine collided with Ash's small body, and the impact compelled him to release the tree trunk he had been holding onto. Soundlessly, the young boy slid off the side of the cliff and fell, his body hidden beneath the large machine.

Pikachu shrieked, throwing itself against the bars of its cage but only succeeding in making it skid.

James covered his mouth with his hands, staring at the place Ash had just been laying in wide-eyed horror. Even Jesse and Meowth were stunned silent. Team Rocket was not the most honorable lot, but they were not murderers.

Until now.

Ignoring the simultaneously cries of Bulbasaur and Pikachu, Brock swiftly but carefully made his way to the edge of the cliff. On the bottom, he could only see the broken pieces of machinery. Ash had to be somewhere in that rubble.

Misty remained where she was, her breaths caught in her throat. No, no this was not supposed to happen! Not to Ash! He was supposed to return her bike! He was supposed to complete this journey!

"We need to get down there right now!" Brock yelled over the roar of the pouring rain. That finally broke the former water gym leader out of her trance.

Bayleef scampered to his side, shaking and whimpering with fear over the state of its beloved trainer. It extended its vines as far as possible, but only managed to reach halfway.

Pikachu let out another cry, putting its small paws against the bars.

Misty's eyes stung as she slowly leaned down and fumbled with the cage. With a small click, she got it opened and Pikachu bolted out of it. As the mouse-pokemon reached the edge of the cliff, the water trainer shakily and sluggishly made her way over to the small group.

Brock swallowed dryly, looking at Bulbasaur. "Can you climb down to the end of the vines and extend your own vines to the bottom of the cliff?"

Bulbasaur shakily looked at the rock pokemon trainer. Panting, it slowly nodded. The little pokemon descended to the end of Bayleef's vines, then extended his as far as they could go.

Quickly turning to face Misty, Brock placed his hands firmly on her shoulders. "Stay here. Make sure Bayleef doesn't fall, okay?"

Misty slowly nodded. Satisfied with that answer, Brock climbed onto Bayleef's vines, then slid down, climbed slowly over Bulbasaur, then down his vines. Finally, he made a small drop to the wreckage and quickly began to search.

"Ash!" he cried, carefully moving aside pieces of the broken crane. "Ash! Can you hear me?! Say something, do something, show me you can hear me! Ash?!"

There was no response. As Brock lifted another piece of the debris, he noticed, with alarm, a hand sticking out. He immediately began digging around that area.

With a squeak, Pikachu landed next to him and also began to shift aside the wreckage. Within a few more minutes, the battered body of Ash was dug up. The boy was laying limply, unresponsive to any questions or stimulation.

Brock bit his bottom lip, looking up at the vines from which he came. Ash was far too injured to be carried up the mountain by the vines... But the only town nearby was the one they were heading to. What were they to do?!

"I-is he alright?!" Jesse suddenly called from the balloon as it slowly descended down the cliff and hovered mere feet above Brock, Pikachu and the fallen Ash.

"What do you think?!" Brock cried, the circumstances having left the normally docile trainer angry and frightful.

"W-we can take him to the hospital!" James stammered his offer. The thought of ever killing someone was terrifying to the young Rocket member. Petty thievery was one thing, but if their actions caused Ash's death...he didn't know if he'd ever be able to live with himself.

Brock glared up at them. How were they supposed to trust the very people who caused all of this?! But...looking at the terrain around him, he knew he didn't have a choice. With the balloon, Team Rocket could get Ash to the hospital far more quickly than they could...

...and those moments could be the ones who separated life from death.

* * *

In the hospital room, the steady beeping of the heart monitor was deafening. Pikachu sat on the edge of the pillow, curled up by Ash's head. His other pokemon were out of their poke balls, too worried to be contained. They laid around his bed. Sitting in chair beside him was Brock. Misty paced back and forth by the door.

She felt terrible. Here she was, a supposedly great Cerulean gym leader...yet she had stood in silence and watched her best friend get...

The group could hear the thunder clapping outside even through the reinforced walls. Not even once did the weather let up, not even for a moment. Instead, it became increasingly worse. Pikachu squeaked and covered its ears with its paws as another thunderclap rang, moving closer to the still form of Ash. The sound was loud and booming, causing the entire room to shake as if in terror before an angered God.

Lights began to flicker as one of the nurses walked in. "Oh no.."

Brock tensed, turning to look at the girl. It was a rare moment where the boy simply wasn't in the state of mind to hit on anyone. "I don't like the sound of that..." he said, trying to remain calm. "What's wrong?"

"We can't afford to lose electricity again.." the nurse shook her head as another thunderclap resounded. "The weather's been terrible lately and we've lost electricity six times in the last two days. Our battery reserves just can't handle it anymore."

"And what does that supposed to mean?!" Misty cried, glaring at the other woman as if she was the cause of all their troubles.

Pikachu's ears twitched and it lifted its head to look at the humans.

"That means if the electricity goes out again, we won't have enough in the reserves even to maintain his life support systems," the nurse stated, rubbing her eyes with the back of one hand exhaustedly.

Pikachu tensed, its ears lowering to the sides of its skull.

The lights flickered, and with it the hopes that Ash would survive through this. For if the lights went out...so would his life.

Three hours had passed and neither Ash nor the weather seemed any better. As Misty watched over Ash, Brock stared helplessly at the lights as if hoping to keep the electricity going by sheer will. What would happen if the lights went out? What could they possibly do?! He had no idea, and just hoped that the storm would ease up soon.

Pikachu gently licked Ash's cheek, the nudged him. Its ears remained pressed against its skull and a small squeak escaped. What if he died, in this cold white bed, amidst the machines? The little mouse shook its head as a shiver ran down its spine. That can't happen. Ash was just a boy, despite all of the adventures he had already gone on, it couldn't end this way.

It could remember the first day it met Ash. At first, it hated the boy, and the captivity he represented. But Ash Ketchum was not the stereotypical trainer. Never had Pikachu seen a boy so willing to sacrifice himself or his happiness for the sake of his pokemon. He had burdened the ridicule of his peers for 'letting his Pikachu run loose,' for letting his pokemon do whatever they wished. Initially, Pikachu had figured that Ash was weak, but it didn't take long to figure out that the boy was so immensely strong...

He didn't need discipline and force to get his pokemon to obey. Ash saw them not as beasts for him to control, but as friends.

And for that, Pikachu appreciated him.

* * *

It was inevitable, with all of the rain and thunder, everyone knew it was coming. Never had the group been overwhelmed with such a sense of helplessness.

A breath passed between Brock's teeth as the lights went out.

As soon as the room went dark, Pikachu yelped and jumped off of Ash's bed. Misty stood up and placed her fingers shakily on her best friend's neck to feel for a pulse.

"Maybe.." the girl's voice was barely audible as she looked into Ash's closed eyes. "Maybe...by now he doesn't need the life support systems anymore..? Maybe.. H-he could hold out until the electricity comes back on?"

His pulse fluttered sporadically underneath her fingertips and her breaths caught in her throat when she could no longer feel anything

"How's Ash?" Brock asked as he entered the dark room and felt his way over to the bed.

Pikachu watched as the nurse walked in to check his vital signs. Misty looked at her helplessly. The nurse swallowed dryly, then shook her head. "He's not going to last. We need to get that system back online...but there's nothing we can do in this weather. We just don't have enough electricity-"  
"Pika!" the pokemon waved its paws, hopping up and down and looking intensely at the nurse.

Misty swallowed tearfully. "M-maybe Pikachu's thunder attack could get the electricity going again?"

"I don't know if it'll have enough power to do it...the support systems take up so much energy..." the nurse said, but after looking into the pokemon's defiant expression, she nodded. "But I'll take you to the power room."

"Hurry!" Misty cried as she literally dragged the nurse out the door. "Take us to the power room!"

The nurse nodded and quickly led the group to the generator. Pikachu swiftly followed at their heels and as soon as they arrived, it placed its paws on the engine. Letting out a cry, its cheeks puffed up slightly as electricity coursed through its tiny body into the machine. The lights flickered slightly, but there was no other response. The little pokemon let out a whine, then narrowed its eyes in conviction as it unleashed another electrical attack, this time using all of the strength its small body could muster.

Brock and Misty looked up to see the lights flicker some more. The two crossed their fingers, wishing so intensely that there was something, anything, else they could do to help their companion. Pikachu growled as weakness began to seep into its muscles, but it continued to send as much electricity into the generator as possible. Until finally, spent, the little pokemon collapsed onto its stomach, panting.

The lights flickered for several seconds, before the room went dark once more.

* * *

Ash's heart continuously stopped, and the group had to rely on CPR to bring him back. Brock, fortunately, being the eldest of many siblings, knew everything and anything regarding first aid. The room was silent except for Brock's quiet counting.

The sight was horrifying in Pikachu's eyes. The boy who was once so hyper and full of life now laid so very still...and the pokemon felt so absolutely helpless. All he needed to survive was electricity... Being an electric-type pokemon and unable to provide it was devastating.

But...it did get the lights to flicker. If it could somehow produce more power... Maybe Ash's life would be saved?

Pikachu's eyes suddenly widened as it remembered the entire reason why they had come here - the stones! They were coming here to deliver stones! Where was the bag, now? The pokemon's ears and nose twitched as it noticed Ash's battered backpack laying by the door. The entire mission had been forgotten the moment Ash fell from that slippery cliff. Brock and Misty paid no heed to the little creature, neither did the other pokemon that circled around Ash's bed. Finally the boy began to breathe again, but they were short gasps. His heart may not be able to take any more revivals.

"C'mon Ash, please!" Misty cried. "You can't give up! How are you going to become the pokemon master if you give up now?! Please! Just hold on a little while longer."

Pikachu pawed the bag until it opened, then gripped the edge and peered inside. There it was, amongst the water and fire and moon stones...was the thunder stone.

_Once a pokemon evolves, it is never again the same._

Brock gritted his teeth tearfully as another clap of thunder resounded.

_Not only does their body change, but their personalities tend to as well. Sometimes, they lose who they were and become something totally new._

The thought of losing itself that way made the small pokemon hesitate. Once evolved, there was no going back.

Small breaths erratically filled the air, accompanied by the quiet sobs of the normally angry Misty. It was strange to hear her cry so openly.

The little mouse looked over its shoulder to see the humans hovering around his trainer's still body. Professor Oak's words to Ash echoed through the pokemon's mind like a mantra. It never wanted to evolve, to lose the personality and life it had grown so fond of. There was nothing to say as to what the future holds, especially once evolved. What if it...suddenly grew to disdain Ash, just like Charmeleon had? What would it become? Would its new personality be a mirror image of its former self, or something else?! Was it worth the risk?

Suddenly, the breaths stopped again and Brock's voice was tinged with anguish. "Ash, no!"

That was it.

Pikachu did not want to lose itself, but a life without Ash was not a life at all.

With that in mind, it firmly pressed its paw against the thunder stone.

With a small, weak groan, his eyes slowly began to open to find a blurry white mass before him.

"A-Ash..?" Misty... Her voice never sounded so frail as it did in that quiet moment.

He slowly turned his head as his eyes began to focus on her soft frame. Standing beside her was the familiar, taller figure of Brock. "H...Hey..."

"Thank goodness..." Brock murmured, appearing visibly worn out. "You've had us really worried, Ash."

"Worried?!" Misty cried, raising her fist as if to punch Ash. "You've had us more than worried, you jerk! How dare you almost die on us! Don't you know you still owe me a bike?!"

Ash coughed and she immediately lowered her arm to her side. "Heh...eheh... Sorry...about that... I never meant...to make you worry..."

"Well... We're just happy you're back," Misty said softly, a smile touching her lips. "We...really didn't think you were going to make it for awhile, there."

"If it wasn't for Pikachu, you never would have," Brock said honestly.

"Really?" Ash smiled weakly, then lifted his head ever so slightly. "Where...where is Pikachu, anyway?"

"Ash.." Misty said softly. "Pikachu's...not quite the same anymore."

The boy blinked, looking up at her in confusion. "What...do you mean?"

"He's not Pikachu anymore, Ash," Brock answered softly, looking down at his friend in worry. He wasn't sure how the boy was going to take this.

"What? That...doesn't make sense. How could he not be Pikachu anymore?" Ash's eyes suddenly widened as the words resonated in his weary mind.

Seeing the response on his companion's face, Brock sighed and stepped aside so that he no longer blocked the doorway. Standing there, was a Raichu.

Professor Oak's words had not been false that fateful day when he had explained the nature of evolution to the aspiring trainer. Although Ash adored Raichu just as much as he had during the pokemon's previous form...that emotion was not returned with the same vigor Pikachu had shown.

Yes, Raichu had all of the memories of its former form, but it no longer felt the same connection. It was as if those flashbacks belonged to a different pokemon. Although it remembered why it had transformed into its current state, it no longer remembered why it had been compelled so completely to throw itself into the tides of Fate most pokemon are compelled to.

Despite the pain often reflected of knowledge reflected in the boy's eyes, a smile always remained on his face. Even from the first moment of gazing into the Raichu's eyes, he knew that this was no longer the Pikachu he knew. Although he knew he lost his best friend that day, he would not allow the pokemon's sacrifice to be in vain. He moved aside everything he had ever known about his companion and strived to acquaint himself with this new form. Ash vowed to make new memories, new moments, a new relationship with Raichu. He would never give up. Pikachu never gave up on him.

And he knew, despite the newly developed detachment, Raichu wouldn't, either.

_Author's Notes: Despite the fact that I am not currently into Pokemon at all, this story idea has floated in my mind for at least a year and a half and I finally decided to sit down and write it out. I hoped to make it different from the fics normally found, but whether or not it actually is cannot currently be determined. It's been a long time since I've written any fan fiction as of late, with college work and stuff continuously eating up all of my attention. Anyway, I hope that my solitary attempt at Pokemon fan fiction isn't too craptastic. I'm not sure when exactly this story takes place, and I hope the Pokemon he has with him are in canon with the story. I haven't watched any of the new stuff so I opted for one of his older teams. _

_Ultimately, I wanted to give it a bit of a tragic ending, but with the hope that better can be achieved. Hope you enjoyed it and thanks for taking the time to read it! Reviews are welcomed._


End file.
